Today's featured high school football playoff games — Published Nov. 16, 2012

Friday

Nov 16, 2012 at 12:01 AM

Division II

No. 15 Loomis-Del Oro (6-5) at No. 7 St. Mary's (9-2)

Kickoff: 7 p.m., Sanguinetti Field

Radio: 1230-AM

Del Oro skinny: The Eagles, the two-time defending Sac-Joaquin Section Division III champions and winners of eight section titles, have won three in a row and six of their last seven after starting the season with four consecutive losses against a difficult pre-league schedule of Westlake Village-Oaks Christian, Westlake Village-Westlake, Sacramento-Burbank and Sacramento-Grant. On Sept. 28, Del Oro beat Union City-Logan 20-13 to get into the win column. Since then, the Eagles have outscored their opponents 211-112. Del Oro has surrendered 30 points per game over its past three games, yet won them all: Grass Valley-Nevada Union (45-35), Rocklin (38-35) and Yuba City 45-21 last week in the first round of the playoffs. The Eagles average 312 yards per game, split nearly evenly between passing and rushing. Del Oro is a prolific program under coach Casey Taylor, who is in his ninth season, meaning they do the same things well with different players every season. St. Mary's coach Tony Franks said, "They're a run-first, run dominant, stretch the front, 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) and they try to stretch your front a little bit and try to overload you with some unbalanced looks. They run basic plays over and over and just keep coming." Defensively, the Eagles keep the game in front of them, meaning their defensive backs hate getting beat deep, which will test the patience of St. Mary's cadre of receivers.

St. Mary's skinny: Franks has reminded his players this week about the 2009 season, when St. Mary's was 11-0 and the No. 1 seed in Division II but suffered a shocking 30-29 loss to Del Oro in the second round of the playoffs. "It was probably one of the toughest nights of my coaching career," Franks said. "Just a brutal loss. God, we had a terrific team and to be eliminated in the second round by an equally talented Del Oro squad ... we still remember that." In uniform on the sideline for St. Mary's that night were then-freshmen Spencer Whyte and Joey Carl, now senior starters at linebacker and along the offensive and defensive lines, respectively. Sitting in the stands watching that game at Sanguinetti Field was then-eighth grader Kaleb Parrish, now the Rams' starting quarterback. Franks said the disappointment in 2009 has served as a cautionary tale: Del Oro might be the No. 15 seed in this tournament, but they are far from a 15-seed when it comes to talent, ability and tradition. The Rams enter this one a battle-tested team, having prepared against top-flight non-league competition, including Bakersfield-Stockdale, Concord-De La Salle, Modesto Christian and Lincoln - all physical, run-first teams. That preparation and the focus on being stout against the run, the mantra Franks and the coaching staff have preached all season, has to pay off tonight for St. Mary's to advance.

Del Oro players to watch: Senior Zach Labar has completed 62 percent of his passes (72 of 116) for 1,218 yards, and senior Brandon Monroe, who has committed to San Jose State, has rushed for 1,042 yards and 11 touchdowns.

St. Mary's players to watch: Parrish has completed 65 percent of his attempts (143 for 220) for 2,059 yards and 26 touchdowns. Javonte Norman has rushed for 570 yards and six touchdowns, and Bryan Pascual has made 40 receptions for 598 yards and seven TDs.

No. 6 Sacramento-Inderkum (9-2) at No. 3 Sierra (10-1)

Kickoff: 7 p.m., Daniel Teicheira Memorial Stadium

Inderkum skinny: The Tigers advanced to the second round for the seventh consecutive year after being Manteca last week, 30-21. C.J. Spencer completed 8 of 12 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns, and Brandon Powell ran for 95 yards on six carries. Powell and Josh Montes, though not 100 percent healthy, likely will carry the load on the ground, as Inderkum's vaunted backfield from a year ago has experienced injuries and discipline issues. Montes, D.J. Myart and Eric Walters combined for 2,623 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns as juniors. Myart suffered a season-ending knee injury just prior to the season opener, and Walters, who was slowed by a foot injury in mid-October, was removed from the team recently for violating team rules. Junior Terence White and Austin Thurmond, who was promoted from the sophomore team, round out the backfield. Tigers' coach Terry Stark is a longtime proponent of the wing-T offense, having run the offense as a quarterback at Sacramento-Mira Loma in the mid-1970s. As is custom with teams that run the wing-T well, Inderkum has quick linemen and a quarterback who can hide the ball well to keep the defense guessing. Of all of tonight's games in divisions I, II and III, this is the only game that will be played on a natural grass field, a factor that could slow down Inderkum.

Sierra skinny: Timberwolves coach Jeff Harbison sees containing Inderkum's wing-T offense as the key to tonight's game. "They are a very fast, very athletic football team. They're a good solid football team," he said. Sierra will be challenged defensively to remain disciplined and play what commonly is referred to as "assignment football," where players who chase after the ball carrier or the player who they think has the ball, rather than stay in their lanes, often find themselves in trouble. This is especially true against the wing-T, where misdirection and counter plays are the norm. Sierra would do well to jump out to an early lead, obviously easier said than done. Inderkum can strike quickly but isn't built that way. Offensively, the Timberwolves have relied on senior running back Anthony Cota, who has amassed 1,876 yards and scored a single-season school record 36 rushing touchdowns and 39 in total. Cota is fourth in the section in rushing yards and leads the section in scoring with 236 points. Quarterback Jake Pruitt, though, "has come along lately and thrown the ball really well," according to Harbison. If common opponents are to serve as any indication, Sierra beat Manteca by nine points, 35-26 on Oct. 5, the same margin of victory the Tigers earned last week against the Buffaloes.

Inderkum player to watch: Linebacker and tight end Dedric Allen, a 6-foot-2, 240-pounder, who is receiving recruiting interest. Allen leads the team with 20 solo tackles and has nine assists and three sacks.

Sierra player to watch: Pruitt and his receivers have to take some of the focus off Cota. Pruitt went 11 of 20 for 148 yards and a touchdown in the Timberwolves' 28-8 win over Sacramento-Rosemont last week in the first round.

- Bob Highfill

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